Pictured: Murdered security guard beaten to death by two men and boy

Pictured: Murdered security guard beaten to death by two brothers and boy, 14, who kicked the 55-year-old in the head as he lay unconscious

• Christopher Molloy, 55, was beaten to death in a gang attack on July 12 last year
• The first photo of the the security guard, wearing his uniform, has been revealed 
• Jay Byrne, 26, Joseph Byrne, 25 and a then-14-year-old were arrested
• The brothers were cleared of murder yesterday while the boy was found guilty
• The teenager shouted ‘you fat ugly p****’ during a furious outburst at a judge

The first picture of security guard Christopher Molloy, beaten to death by two brothers and a 14-year-old boy who kicked the 55-year-old in the head as he lay unconscious in a gang attack last year, has been revealed.

The boy, now 15, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found guilty of beating Christopher Molloy, 55, to death along with a pair of brothers in an early hours ‘gang attack’ in the Bootle area of Merseyside in July. 

Jay Byrne, 26, Joseph Byrne, 25, and the boy were on trial at Liverpool Crown Court charged with murdering the 55-year-old.

The two brothers were cleared of this charge by a majority on Thursday morning, while the teen was unanimously convicted of murder by the jury.

Security guard Christopher Molloy, beaten to death by two brothers and a 14-year-old boy in a gang attack last year, has been pictured for the first time 

The 15-year-old shouted ‘you fat ugly p****’ during a furious outburst at a judge after being found guilty of the security guard’s murder.  

All three had previously admitted manslaughter, and will be sentenced on March 16. 

Jurors heard an argument between the group erupted near a Burger King at around 12:45am on July 12 last year after Mr Molloy was accused of ‘touching’ the teenage defendant’s girlfriend.

Jay Byrne, of Southport, allegedly either punched or pushed Mr Molloy, who then fled to the McDonald’s opposite and sought assistance from staff ‘because he was concerned as to what was happening, trying to get help’.

The 55-year-old remained in the doorway of the fast food branch for several minutes before walking away – at which point he was chased by 25-year-old Joseph Byrne, of Litherland, and the 14-year-old boy.

Jay Byrne, 26, admitted to the manslaughter of Christopher Molloy but was cleared of murder

Joseph Byrne, 25, also admitted to manslaughter after the brutal attacking of Mr Molloy but was cleared of murder

A second confrontation near the junction of Stanley Road and Strand Road was captured on CCTV footage which was played to the court. 

The footage showed the younger Byrne ‘landing an extremely forceful punch’ with his right hand, knocking Mr Molloy to the floor.

The victim fell backwards and ‘cracked his head on the pavement’, rendering him unconscious. The juvenile was then seen repeatedly slapping him in the face – a total of eight times – as he lay helpless on the floor.

Both attackers walked away in the direction of the Natwest bank, being caught on camera fist bumping. The boy returned shortly afterwards alongside 26-year-old Jay Byrne, who kicked the unconscious Mr Molloy in the head.

The teen then delivered a second kick to the head, described as a ‘particularly ferocious kick, like kicking a football hard’. A patrolling police car was then flagged down by a taxi driver who reported that there was a man lying unconscious in the road.

The victim fell backwards and ‘cracked his head on the pavement’, rendering him unconscious

Meanwhile, another member of the public had alerted the attentions of a passing ambulance, and it became ‘immediately obvious that Mr Molloy was extremely unwell’.

He had a host of cuts, bruising and swelling to his face and head and began vomiting once placed in the back of the ambulance. 

After being rushed to the Walton Centre, he underwent emergency surgery shortly before 5am.

However, Mr Molloy had suffered internal bleeding and fractures, and his life support was ultimately withdrawn. The victim died on July 19, 2022, a week after the assault.

Joseph Byrne said on the stand that he had given Mr Molloy ‘a little slap to teach him a lesson’ after he was told that he had been ‘grabbing the a***’ of the teen’s girlfriend. 

But he appeared to become angry with the youngster while under cross-examination – at one point turning to him and saying ‘he done it and he knows he did’ – before refusing to answer any further questions from the prosecution.

Jay Byrne did not give evidence to the trial, but the boy said from the witness box that he had been imitating a scene from 1995 comedy film Friday – namely when the character played by Chris Tucker shouts ‘you got knocked the f*** out’. 

He also alleged that Joseph Byrne asked ‘do you want to see a knockout punch?’ before rendering Mr Molloy unconscious.

Of the moment he kicked him on the floor, the teen said: ‘I didn’t think. I was just copying what Jay did.’

Members of the 15-year-old’s family left the public gallery when the guilty verdict was delivered at Liverpool Crown Court on Thursday, January 19, and the boy slammed a door as he stormed out of the dock. 

He also shouted ‘you fat ugly p****’ during a furious outburst at a judge as he was found guilty of murder.

Jay Byrne put his face in his hands and seemed to attempt calming his co-defendant down, saying ‘chill bro’.

Joseph Byrne was seen smiling as he was led back down to the cells.

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